Storing Important Data on the Boot Drive is Asking For Trouble — Always Make a Separate Volume
re: backup
re: Apple Core Rot
re: OWC articles by Lloyd
If someone enters your property without your permission and then proceeds to trash it and lock you out as well, is that a criminal act? How is that different with a computer? It’s akin to malware, at the least.
Today’s all day recovery from IMO criminally negligent Apple property damage is a good reminder of why this is some of the best advice I can give you:
Never store your important data on the boot drive!
Had I failed to put most of my data onto a separate volume, all my data would have been wiped out as part of reinstalling the system today. It’s bad enough that I had to spend hours reinstalling all my apps, redoing dozens of preferences, etc.
Do not trust Apple with your data. It will end badly.
Add a Separate macOS Volume for Important Data Instead of Storing It All in the Home Directory
2024-01-17, by Lloyd Chambers of MacPerformanceGuide.com
Separate data volume enjoys lower risk of wipe-out from system meltdown, faster and smaller backups.
Most users buy a new Mac and happily go about their business, letting all their Stuff get stored willy-nilly onto the internal SSD of that Mac into folders of their home directory: Documents, Pictures, Music, etc. This seeming simplicity has great appeal, but sooner or later the price for it will be paid.
That is, it is only a matter of time before there is a problem with the startup volume. If that issue means also wiping out all your important data in order to recover, you might pay a heavy price, if only in downtime as a professional, and maybe worse in data loss.
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MPG: the video below shows (in part) how to create a separate volume on any drive including your internal SSD (boot drive). Make sure it is backed up with a minimumof two backups stored safely away from the computer—see external backup drives here.